Rare bronze 19th century Gillow panels unearthed at a south Liverpool storage unit

John Crane with the ornate bronze Gillow panels found in a docklands warehouse - Photo by Colin Lane

Share

Get daily updates directly to your inbox

Thank you for subscribing!

Could not subscribe, try again laterInvalid Email

Unique bronze panels made by a famous furniture maker were unearthed after laying undisturbed for more than a century.

The ornate Gillow panels, described as “rare survivals” by an antiques expert, were brought into Liverpool auctioneers Cato and Crane earlier this month.

The panels, which may have been left in a storage unit for up to 115 years, are decorated with gold medallions depicting French presidents and British royalty, alongside a series of dates.

They were found when a south Liverpool docklands storage unit was cleared and passed on to auctioneer John Crane who says he recognised them immediately apart from one mysterious feature.

Close up of the Gillow panels found in a docklands warehouse - Photo by Colin Lane

He said: “I knew what they were as soon as I saw them but there is a mystery. The very first date it says is ‘Gillows, 1695’, and Gillows weren’t in existence in 1695, so I think that’s a commercial move to make them seem older than they were.”

One theory is that they were used to decorate the Gillow stand at the Paris World Fair in 1900 and were brought back to Merseyside and forgotten afterwards.

Martin Levy, an antique furniture and art expert, said he had “never seen anything like this” and added: “I’d suggest that these are unusual rather than hugely valuable. They do, however, seem to be an interesting survival of promotional material, and thus part of Gillow’s business history.”

Gillow was originally started by Robert Gillow, who was from Lancaster, in 1730.

The firm had a very strong reputation for producing high-quality furniture for private houses and commercial businesses across the country and kept the patterns for their high-quality pieces a closely guarded secret.

The ornate bronze Gillow panels - Photo by Colin Lane

In 1897 the firm was taken over by Liverpool firm Waring - with Waring and Gillow opening a furniture shop on Bold Street.

They had a factory on Fleet Street in Liverpool which was used to manufacture aircraft parts during World War I.

Gillow expert Susan Stuart said that they are unusually ornate for a firm that was known for their simple, practical pieces.

She said: “You get really, really good quality and very simple pieces, and some of them would look good in a modern house really.

“These are more elaborate and Edwardian, but they would have looked very fine for what they were designed for, which I suspect was part of a display.”